PULMONARY DIAGNOSIS BY MULTICHANNEL LUNG SOUND ANALYZER

DESCRIPTION (Applicant's abstract): Medical personnel routinely use the
acoustic stethoscope to listen to lung sounds because the sounds provide
important clinical information. These sounds are complex signals that reflect
the underlying pulmonary pathophysiology. Unfortunately, studies of
auscultation of the chest consistently show significant observer variability
casting doubt on its clinical reliability. We developed user friendly,
practical computerized technologies to obtain the important information
provided by the sounds. Our results have been validated, patented, presented at
scientific meetings and published in prominent journals. Our method provides
objective, reliable information not previously possible to obtain with the
human ear. It can be used even in severely ill patients. We are confident that
automated lung sound analysis will replace the acoustic stethoscope in many of
its current applications and become the new standard.
In Phase I, we plan to determine whether our preliminary observations are
correct that the acoustic patterns found in patients with heart failure are
significantly different than those found in pneumonia. As a treatment of these
very common disorders are different, more accurate diagnosis can have
significant clinical and monetary benefit. In Phase II we will optimize our
methods and demonstrate the value of automated lung sound analysis in broader
clinical trials.
PROPOSED COMMERCIAL APPLICATION: NOT AVAILABLE